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All-New Bronco Sport Nabs Off-Road Win at Grueling Rebelle Rally
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally richardgiordano_prologue_-243


DEARBORN, Mich., Oct. 19, 2020 – It didn’t take long for the 2021 Bronco Sport to flex its off-road muscle. Professional driver Shelby Hall and experienced navigator Penny Dale guided the all-new Bronco® of small SUVs – on sale later this year – to a win at the prestigious Rebelle Rally Saturday.

Hall and Dale won first place in the X-Cross class at the event, a grueling week-long adventure that requires contestants to cover 1,200 miles of Nevada and California desert terrain. In lieu of electronic GPS mapping, teams rely on old-school compass-and-map navigation to reach designated checkpoints along the way.

Perhaps as impressively, all three Bronco Sport entries finished the rally. Novice off-roaders and Ford Bronco marketing team members Jovina Young and Erica Martin finished fifth. Competing in a third Bronco Sport, enthusiasts Elana Scherr and Betsy Anderson were close behind in sixth place.

“Just finishing Rebelle is an impressive feat – we’re proud of all three Bronco Sport teams,” said Mark Grueber, Bronco brand marketing manager. “The results really underscore that Bronco Sport delivers, both for seasoned pros and off-road novices. All of these women embody what Built Wild™ stands for, and the first-place finish by Shelby and Penny helps establish this all-new vehicle as the Bronco of small SUVs.”

This year marked the fifth running of the Rebelle Rally, an all-women off-road event that begins near Lake Tahoe in Nevada and ends at Imperial Sand Dunes in California. The event is designed to blend serious off-road competition with the ultimate road trip.

Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-2

Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-1
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-3
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-4
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-5
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-6
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-7
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-8
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-9
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-10
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-11
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-12
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-13
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-14
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Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-16
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-17
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-18
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-19
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally Bronco-Sport-Rebelle-Rally-Win-20
Ford Bronco Sport Bronco Sport Wins Off-Road Race at Rebelle Rally richardgiordano_prologue_-243
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JamesT

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so proud of all three teams. Well done!
 

Wyo

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That's awesome news!

Can't wait to start exploring in mine early next year!
 

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Congrats to all the girls. I hope to see the rookies back next year to see how they improve.

I wonder if Ford is looking at any improvments after this rally? I heard that team 202 had a transmission leak after an "event" on the dunes. Could this have been avoided with better bash plates? In general, the Bronco Sport teams seemed to get caught in the dunes, as others did too. I know a lot of this is driver skill, but are there improvments that can be made to the platform (tires, clearance,...). I know from being out at Trona Pinnacles last week, the sand scares me the most.
 


BobSlydel21

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Yea apparently all 3 podium teams in x cross had some issues. But they still managed to get back out there and put up big points overall.

I really do hope Ford releases some sort of X’s and O’s On what our three teams experienced issue wise. Honestly the stuff they did, is way more than I’ll probably ever do... but knowing would definitely give confidence to us looking to start adventuring.
 

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Yea apparently all 3 podium teams in x cross had some issues. But they still managed to get back out there and put up big points overall.

I really do hope Ford releases some sort of X’s and O’s On what our three teams experienced issue wise. Honestly the stuff they did, is way more than I’ll probably ever do... but knowing would definitely give confidence to us looking to start adventuring.
Exactly. It would be great if Ford released such insightful info. The Kia paid hosts seemed like they were only interested in enough information to subtly implicate. For example, the Telluride helped pull a Bronco Sport out of the sand, the 202 Bronco Sport team lost transmission fluid in the dunes, and the 201 Bronco Sport ran out of gas on stage 5. In Kia marketing terms, the Telluride dominates the Bronco Sport in the sand, the Bronco Sport is unreliable and it has poor gas mileage/range. Let's hear Ford's take.

I did appreciate the honesty of the leading Mitsubishi team explaining their issue on the last stage (again, in the dunes) and how it was related to the added weight and center weight distribution of their PHEV. Being interested in the PHEV version of the Bronco Sport, the same sort of issues will likely apply and different driving techniques may be required. This is the type of info that is useful for anybody in the dunes with an electrified vehicle.
 

dreamwrx

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Yes rookies had to get pulled out of the sand. Doesn’t mean their vehicle is unreliable. Any vehicle can run out of gas. Doesnt mean their vehicle has poor gas mileage. Fords take will be they won first place. I guess if you don’t ever want to get stuck in the sand and never run out of gas get a telluride ?
I'm interested in the Rivian did pretty well.. they didn't win like the years before but good standing.
 

Cyclone Cowboy

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Yes rookies had to get pulled out of the sand. Doesn’t mean their vehicle is unreliable. Any vehicle can run out of gas. Doesnt mean their vehicle has poor gas mileage. Fords take will be they won first place. I guess if you don’t ever want to get stuck in the sand and never run out of gas get a telluride ?
Hopefully, Kia fixed the well-known and well-discussed issue with power distribution in the Telluride. It's known for sub-par, flat acceleration which was a deal-breaker for me. Surprised someone did not rear end it. :)
 
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Excape

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Congratulations! I am glad that the Bronco Sport placed well, but the race was won by the teams, not the vehicles. Rally racing in particular has to do a whole lot with navigation, fuel management and many other human factors. That said, any competition will reveal a vehicle's weaknesses, so the bigger victory to me is that all Sports finished.
 

Washburn

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That said, any competition will reveal a vehicle's weaknesses, so the bigger victory to me is that all Sports finished.
This!
....because that gives me a lot of confidence in the vehicles's ruggedness, ability to take some abuse and dependability in not-so-usual terrain -
There were no issues of transmissions/differentials/PTUs or engines overheating etc - which gives me hope that the Sport in "normal" conditions would be a vehicle that one can depend on as a DD, AND for some short-term mild off-road adventures if needed.
 

KH_59

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Team 201 appears to be running BF Goodrich All Terrain T/A KO2 tires, a little larger than stock. They look great.

Does anyone happen to know the exact brand/type/size of those tires?
 

dejones64

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Totally Awesome! I think the cool part is they used orienteering to complete the race.
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